Family of girl who died after falling from bus considering law suit

Onynx Williams's older sister, Rontairey Griffin, and her mother, Bobbie White, hold a picture of the 14-year old who tragically died on her way home from school on Jan. 2 in Rutherford.

RUTHERFORD - The family of the 14-year-old girl from Paterson who died after falling from a moving school bus in Rutherford earlier this month has retained legal counsel and is considering a lawsuit against the Paterson School District.

On Friday, Jan. 18, the family of the girl identified as Onynx Williams held a press conference in Newark at their lawyer's office to announce they have sent a notice of tort claim to the school district.

Onynx's mother, Bobbie White and her older sister, Rontairey Griffin, said they want answers about what took place on the bus before Onynx opened the rear emergency door of the school bus.

"We just want to know why it happened - somebody has to be accountable for what happened to her," said White.

Onynx suffered head trauma when she hit the pavement on Riverside Avenue on Jan. 2 and died three days later at Hackensack University Medical Center. Her funeral was held last week in Paterson.

"I'm at a heart loss because my baby's not here anymore," said White.

Witnesses told Rutherford Police that Onynx suddenly got up from her seat and ran to the rear of the moving school bus where she opened the rear emergency door and fell or jumped out. The driver of the bus immediately stopped the vehicle after the emergency door triggered the alarm.

Police said that the bus, operated by K&M Transportation of Wallington, had one aide on board; however, the Paterson School District's contract with K&M required the company to provide two aides on the bus.

The Paterson School District has since canceled its contract with K&M, citing that the terms and conditions of their contract with the transportation company had been violated.

At the time of the accident, the bus was traveling through Rutherford on its way to drop of students from the Venture program in Hackensack, which is a school for students with psychiatric problems run in collaboration with Bergen County Special Services.

Though the family declined to reveal why Onynx, who was in 9th grade, attended the program, her sister said that any notion that her sister "jumped" from the bus was completely false.

"I'll tell you one thing my sister was not suicidal," said Griffin, who explained that the day of the accident Onynx had been excited about coming home to attend her nephew's birthday party.

Griffin said the fact that her sisters injury was to the back of her head signifies that she fell backwards and did not jump. "Not one scratch on her body - everything was to the back of her head," said Griffin.

The lawyer representing the family, Kenyatta Stewart, said he sent a tort claim to the district to preserve the family's right to file a lawsuit against the district. He said he also plans to examine the bus company's role and has yet to determine whether a suit will be filed.